


New Beginnings

by kalisgirl



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Families of Choice, Gen, Loss of Parent(s), Parenthood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-11
Updated: 2015-07-11
Packaged: 2018-04-07 13:30:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,223
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4265001
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kalisgirl/pseuds/kalisgirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Joe West, becoming a parent for the second time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	New Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

  * For [reeby10](https://archiveofourown.org/users/reeby10/gifts).



> The father/son relationship between these two is one of my favourite parts of this show. As wonderful as it is, I'm sure it was a bit rocky off the top. Thank you for the prompt to explore that notion!

Joe West jerked awake. For a disorienting moment, he stared at an unfamiliar ceiling and tried to figure out why his heart was pounding.

“Mom!”

Joe startled at the cry, his surroundings suddenly making sense. He pushed himself up off the guest room floor and moved to the side of the bed. Looking down, he felt helpless. Barry had kicked free of the sheet and his spiderman pyjamas were damp with sweat. The poor kid's face was twisted with an emotion Joe couldn't begin to understand.

“Mom, please!”

Oh God, what was he going to do?

Joe West had been raised by devout church-going folk. He knew right from wrong, and he knew that all that it takes for bad things to happen is for good people to look the other way. So there was no way he was going to allow Nora Allen's son to end up in the foster system, not when there was a spare bedroom across the hall from Iris, not when the pain on Barry's face punched Joe in the gut like a welterweight.

“Mommy! What's going on?”

Joe stepped back from the bed. What was going on? Truthfully, he had no idea. Knowing that he was doing the right thing wasn't much help now. Right now, there was a tiny boy crying in his sleep, begging his mother to not be dead. Joe felt helpless. More than that, he felt scared. Scared that he might do the wrong thing. Scared that he might cause this little boy more pain than he's already suffering. Scared that he didn't have the answers Barry needed right now and scared that he might never have them.

* * *

“In the car, Barry,” Joe said. “We have to pick up Iris.”

“No!” Barry shouted. He crossed his arms and turned his back on Joe.

Joe took a moment to appreciate that Henry Allen's son certainly took after his dad in stubbornness, but a quick look at the school clock brought him back to the matter at hand.

“Yes, Barry. It's time to go get Iris and go home.”

“I don't want to go to your house,” Barry said. “I want to go home.”

Joe sighed. He'd been wondering when this would happen. Eight days was longer than he'd expected. Then again, the last time Barry had been in his own house, he'd watched his mother die.

“We can't go to your house, Barry. It's been locked up until the police figure out what happened to your mom,” he explained.

“I told you what happened to Mom. I told you and told you and told you!” Barry shouted, turning to glare at Joe, his hands clenched into fists.

“I remember,” Joe said. “But until we catch the person who hurt your mom, only police can go in your house.”

“You're a policeman. You can take me home.”

Barry had his mother's quick mind, Joe thought sadly. It was such a shame that Nora wasn't going to see this wonderful boy grow up.

“Right now, the forensic team – that's the science police – they have to check everything very carefully to make sure that the person who hurt your mom is brought to justice. So we can't go in until they are done.”

“Science police?” Barry asked, his interest apparent. His tiny hands relaxed and moved to grip the strap of his school satchel. “Like scientists who are also detectives?”

“Just like that. They do pretty cool stuff, actually.”

“Like what?”

“Well, fingerprints, that's a big one. Footprints, too,” Joe said, slowly walking towards the car. “They take dirt and all kinds of weird goo and figure out what it's made of and where it came from.”

“Wow!” Barry said, climbing into the back seat. “Science is the coolest.”

* * *

“Lights out, honey,” Joe said. “Bed time.”

“C'mon, Dad,” Iris whined. “Ten minutes. I'm almost done my chapter. Harry's at the bottom of the lake and there's mermaids. Mean mermaids.”

“Okay, fine,” Joe agreed. He'd made a deal with Iris that she could read all she wanted so long as her room was tidy, and now her clothes actually made it to the hamper. “But I'm coming to check in exactly ten minutes.”

“Yes, Dad.”

Joe grinned at her sing-song reply. His daughter was getting a bit of sass. He couldn't imagine where from. Probably too much _Moesha_.

“Hey Barry, it's light's out.”

Joe pushed open the guest room door. No, Barry's room. It was Barry's room now. Officially and formally – Joe had signed the guardianship papers two days ago.

It had been an uncomfortable visit to Iron Heights. Henry's face had been blank, as though the loss, pain, and sadness of the past two weeks had worn away any emotions he might have felt. Joe had struggled with feelings of guilt as he passed the paperwork through the drawer. He knew he shouldn't.

He knew it was the right thing to do, to keep Barry out of the temporary care of the state while Henry faced trial. It was the right thing to do, to ensure that Barry would have a home no matter the outcome of that trial. And given what Joe knew, it was the right thing to do to ensure that Barry would have a proper home to grow up in while Henry served his time. That didn't lift the sense of guilt he felt at taking his friend's son away from him, even with the best of intentions.

Poking his head through the doorway, he found Barry curled up on the guest bed with the same book Iris had been reading. The boy glanced up and smiled at Joe, and all of that guilt burned away. Barry might be mourning, and he might be angry sometimes, but as long as he could still smile that wide, happy smile of his, then Joe was doing the right thing.

“Five more minutes?” Barry asked.

Joe snorted. “What is it with you two and these Harry Potter books?”

“Well, there's wizards,” Barry said.

“Oh, of course,” Joe said, grinning. “Wizards. That explains everything.”

“Harry's an orphan,” Barry said abruptly.

Joe smoothed away his smile and sat on the bed beside Barry. “An orphan, huh?”

“His parents were killed. His dad tried to save his mom, and his mom tried to save him. And they died,” Barry finished in a whisper.

Joe winced, glad that Barry was looking down at the book. What could he say to that? Poor kid.

“And then he had to go live with his Aunt and Uncle,” Barry continued. “I don't even have aunts or uncles, Joe.”

The boy looked up. Joe found himself reaching out to wipe away the tear that was trickling down Barry's nose.

“You've got me, kid.” Joe took the book from Barry's hands and pulled the tiny boy into a tight hug. “I know that it's never going to be the same as before, but you will always have a home here.”

* * *

Joe woke to sun shining through the trees. He had slept the night through. Barry had slept the night through, for the first time since Nora died. Joe felt a weight lift from him as he watched sunlight dance in the leaves outside his window. One night without nightmares. It seemed like such a small thing, and yet it was everything. It was a beginning.


End file.
